Throughout Kierkegaard's "pseudonymous authorship"--a set of books written by different characters he dreamed up to remove the burden of authorship from himself--we encounter the possibility that from the perspective of ethics, philosophy, and even religion, the truth will seem ridiculous. Truth, for these pseudonymous authors, takes the form of paradox, which reason and common sense can only call "absurd." Of course, it is no surprise that a paradox seems absurd; if it is not absurd, it is not a paradox. For the pseudonyms, it is therefore either the case 1) that truth is paradoxical, exceeding the realms of ordinary thinking and existing, or 2) that it is not. If it is not, then the absurd is simply absurd and both philosophy and religion are right to reject it. But if truth *is* paradoxical, then we are faced with the problem of thinking the unthinkable, communicating the incommunicable, and getting serious about absurdity. In this seminar, we will wrangle some of these pseudonyms' best-known, most exciting, and crankiest books, along with a few of Kierkegaard's signed, vitriolic attacks on the established church.

Major Readings: (If discrepancies exist between major readings in Wesmaps and the results generated by the Text Book Information link, defer to the readings posted in Broad Street Books.)Text Book InformationFear and Trembling, Philosophical Fragments, Concluding Unscientific Postscript to the Philosophical Fragments, the Sickness unto DeathAttack upon Christendom

Examination and Assignments: Weekly 2-page papers, 15-page final paper, and very active participation.

Additional Requirements and/or Comments: By Tuesday, November 12 at 4 p.m., please e-mail Professor Rubenstein at mrubenstein@wesleyan.edu , detailing your background and interest in Kierkegaard's work in particular, or in western philosophy and/or Christian theology more broadly. Requests received after 11/12 *may* be considered if spaces remain.

This course fulfills the "Method and Theory" requirement for the Religion Department major.

Permission of instructor approval will be granted by the instructor during pre-registration through the Electronic Portfolio. Click "Add to My Courses" and "To request a POI electronically, click here" to submit your request.

Last Updated on AUG-02-2015
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